Resident Evil: Afterlife Blu-ray Review

Business as usual in this fourth outing of the Resident Evil franchise.

I really want to like Paul W.S. Anderson as a filmmaker. And every time he makes a movie, I clear my mind of the crap he's made in the past and attempt to enjoy whatever his latest film may be. I remember his triumphs with films like Event Horizon or his snappy feature-film debut, Shopping. Anderson is such an enthusiastic filmmaker with a sincere passion for the films and franchises he takes on. And he's a pretty great action director, crafting dazzling set pieces and clever tech-noir thrills. But I just can't stand virtually any movie he's made.

It's not really Anderson's craft that's the problem per se; it's his wretched stories. The guy just can't write a movie to save himself. Rather, each of his films play like a pubescent candy-coated fan film (on a serious budget) complete with scene-stealing from classic movies, awful dialogue, and embarrassingly simplistic storytelling.

Resident Evil: Afterlife is yet another Anderson film that just doesn't work. It's delightfully jam-packed with action and ass-kicking, but the film is bad junk food. Effects are terrible. Sets are obvious. Performances are stilted. Lighting is downright putrid, and the story – as per usual – is a mess, with only the shallowest of connections to the video game on which this series is based. Heck, even the zombie makeup effects are pretty atrocious.

This time around, Anderson, who's returning to this series as helmer for the first time since the original feature, has gone all-out, shooting this chapter in 3D. The results are equally as disappointing, but mostly because the film's flimsy $60-million budget just can't handle the attempted epic scope and scale. Sure, Anderson gives Sony their money's worth. He packs the screen with dozens of set pieces, occasionally crafty cinematography, and inspired production design (for the budget). But even if the film cost double or even triple, nothing can save it from its tiresome story, which borrows left and right from numerous classic sci-fi/action movies (Anderson once again shamelessly mines The Matrix franchise for ideas).

The film isn't all bad, though. The action is pretty rousing, and a few set pieces do really work. And the film has a certain B-movie appeal. I'm sure this latest chapter will continue to please its longtime fans, but for someone who wants to see Anderson grow and evolve as a writer and filmmaker, this film feels more like a step backward.

When Resident Evil: Afterlife first came to theaters, it was advertised as using the "James Cameron Fusion Camera System." While that's certainly true – the film did use that 3D camera setup – Resident Evil: Afterlife looks, acts and feels nothing like Avatar, and that can't be more obvious in this hazy, muddled AVC transfer, which makes the film feel more like a cheap direct-to-video than a bona fide big-budget action-horror film. Colors are faded and soft. Fleshtones are pasty and blown out. Details and depth are frustratingly smoothed over. And the film's visual effects look positively terrible. While I'm sure most of these problems are the result of a shoddy production, and have nothing to do with the encode, these flaws are brought to the surface under the microscope of Blu-ray and the end results are just embarrassing. Please note: A separate 3D version of the film is also available, but not included here.

At least the film sounds pretty decent. Using the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio codec, Sony delivers a room-shaking, aggressive presentation not unlike other Resident Evil films in the franchise. Dialogue is clean and clear and surrounds are put to good use. That said, the mix is mercilessly overbearing and not quite as expertly designed as one would hope. But it suits the film's wobbly production values.

Extras are par for the course with this series. Starting off, we've got a surprisingly dull commentary track with director Paul W.S. Anderson, who's usually very enthusiastic in his commentaries – not so much here. In this track, he only pops every so often to talk about shooting in 3D, and to pat himself on the back for creating the Resident Evil film universe. It's pretty boring with a fair amount of dry spots. He's paired with producers Jeremy Bolt and Robert Kulzer, who add very little to the mix.

Next, there are seven featurettes (five are exclusive to this release) that explore the film's production. At just 47 minutes, the EPK featurettes are a bit too lightweight to really sink into the meat of this shoot. Still, fans should get a kick out of what's here.

Exclusive to the Blu-ray, fans are treated to a picture-in-picture making-of track (titled "Undead Vision") that's mostly filled with fly-on-the-wall b-roll, with the occasional interview and animatic to balance things out. Topping off the exclusives, there're about seven minutes of needless deleted scenes, four minutes of outtakes and BD-Live connectivity, as well as Sony's standard movie IQ functionality. The disc also comes packed with previews and a one-minute sneak peek at Resident Evil: Damnation, and it also features a free PS3 theme. Extras are presented in HD.

As usual, if you like the previous Resident Evil films, give this one a whirl – it's bound to deliver the thrills you crave. But if you're a newcomer, you might just want to stay away. This film isn't winning over any new fans.